Chief Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed has said the people of Pakistan have the responsibility to ensure that the country's constitution is protected by all means and all things done according to the mandate.
In his maiden speech after being elevated as the chief justice to District Bar Association Hyderabad on Saturday evening, the CJP also underlined that the holy alliance between the bench and the bar could never be compromised.
He said after the holy Quran and Sunnah, the most sacred book available to the people of Pakistan was the constitution which the people had given to themselves through their elected representatives in the parliament. "it's not just the function of the courts or lawyers to ensure that such sacred document is protected but it is also function of the people to see that the constitution, by all means, protected and all things done according to the mandate," he added.
He observed that the constitution had provided a mechanism to elevate the life of citizens from abject despondency to cherished happiness, well-being and prosperity.
"It is only unwillingness of the functionaries which has become a stumbling block in achievement of the goals provided in the constitution," he opined.
He said the country's constitution and other laws ensure delivery of equal rights and opportunities to all citizens for health, education, prosperity and well-being.
"... and it is with great concern that we note that people are not getting real benefits of such laws in the education and health sectors and opportunities of dignified living are not being provided to the people, which is not only grave injustice but is affecting the very fabric of the society," he added.
He said the administration should take a serious note in that to ensure that all basic and fundamental rights and opportunities were given due effect and application and cherished goals provided in the constitution were achieved.
The CJP pointed out that the founder of Pakistan Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah had laid down many of the principals of governance in his speeches for the country's glory.
However, he lamented, all such good things had been forgotten and had been put in shelves. "In my estimation, it is rather to be taken out from the shelves and at every level to be taught and inculcated in the people," he said.
The CJP underscored that the country had a great potential not only in its manpower but also in the natural resources. He said by mixing the two the country could become most prosperous in the region.
"But as it is always the case, the administration doesn't either has a capacity or will to harness both nor cares to evolve plans for achieving this objective," he noted with concern.
He asked the rulers to ensure that the people were delivered what they were entitled to under the law and disparity between haves and haves-not should immediately be addressed.
The CJP said the 'holy alliance' between the bench and the bar could make it possible to see that the people had happiest and prosperous life and they were provided proper civic and civil infrastructure by the government where they could build upon their lives and that of their families.
"This holy alliance between the bench and the bar will never be compromised," he emphasized.
He said the lawyers ensured that the citizens get justice as their right.
"Such working of the lawyers' fraternity isn't just an Ahsaan [favour] on the people but a sacred duty."
He said the HDBA was the first bar which honoured him with the invitation to participate in its annual dinner.
He recalled that he appeared as a lawyer in the court of Hyderabad and also worked in SHC Hyderabad Circuit bench.
He also recalled that he used to walk in the streets to see the historic city and meet its people.
Earlier, Chief Justice Sindh High Court justice Ahmed Ali Shaikh and President HDBA Imdad Unar also spoke.
The justices of the apex court and SHC as well as the subordinate judiciary and senior lawyers were present on the occasion.